New Web Cam - Boone, IA by Trains on Demand
Added - NS3967 / NS3966 - Patched - Former CEFX Blue/White
New Web Cam - Dunkirk, NY by Wide World of Trains
New Web Cam - Keokuk, IA by StreamTime Live
Hi Everyone,
I'm very close to releasing the new Heritage Units app and I'm looking for folks that might be interested in testing the new version. This is only for the Android (iOS version is ready and will follow within 2-3 weeks).
What's in the new app
100% New Report Submission (hopefully faster & easier than the current)
Map Customizations
Dark Mode (highly requested)
Web Cams (Individual camera links per camera)
If you're interested in becoming a tester please contact me at the support link on the website (https://www.heritageunits.com/main/contact).
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
Removed - CSXT7560 - NCSTL Emblem - Rebuilt and repainted (no longer has emblem)
Added - NJT4508 - Black History Wrap
Removed - AMTK174 - Phase VII. Mentioned earlier when adding this unit. We would tracked until Amtrak started painting additional units in Phase VII. Amtrak 82 has been recently repainted and thus we're taking the unit down.
Added Montana Rail Link SD70ACe units (MRL4300-4319 / MRL4400-4408) as some of the units are starting to venture out onto the BNSF system. We'll add additional units in the future.
Added - AMTK174 - Phase VII.
Please note that this is first P42 in Phase VII and we'll temporarily track this unit until the additional units get repainted into Phase VII.
Removed - CSXT7574 - Thomas Rice Special - Rebuilt and Repainted
Renumbered AMTK406 to AMTK90406
Removed - IC 2463 & 2459 - Blue Devil (Scrapped)
New Web Cam - Blue Island, IL by LiveTrains.com
Fixed a bug where the Train Symbols web page was appearing to fail to load.
New Web Cam - Newport, MN by Northern Transcon Railcams-Otter Tail Channel
With the BNSF taking over the Montana Rail Link (MRL) effective Jan. 1st, 2024. We're starting to move things around within the Heritage Units system to align. Below are some quick bullet points.
Happy New Years!
Heritage Units Team
New Web Cam - Clear Creek, CA by M. Leland-Nascimento
Merry Christmas from the HeritageUnits Team!
New Web Cam - Okarche, OK by okweatherwatch.com
New Web Cam - Galveston, TX by M. Reeves
Added - NS5231 - NS High Hood
Removed - PRLX6003 - Blue/White Striped - Waiting to be rebuilt
New Web Cam - New London, CT by Railside Live
New Web Cam - Ludlow, KY by RailStream.net
Removed - WE7009 - Operation Lifesaver (sticker removed)
New Web Cam - Cowan, TN by Cowan, TN Railroad Museum
The following regional railroads have been updated in the system. This includes the mapping of the subdivisions, enabling of routing on train symbols and inbound ETA predictions.
I'll continue to expand the routing engine to additional regional railroads in the upcoming weeks.
Brian =)
Added - CSXT6509 - Georgia Road Emblem - Spotted in Hamilton, OH by Chuck C.
To our Iowa Interstate Railfans. We've recently mapped out the sub divisions and have configured routing for the railroad. If you have inbound train feature enabled; the server will now start calculating the route and ETAs (train symbol required).
Added - CSXT6394 - RF&P Nose
Because of the numerous requests we've received within a brief period, we have decided to track this unit based on the request from the HU community. It's important to mention that this unit was recently subjected to vandalism and to our knowledge is not recognized as an official CSX Heritage Unit. We strongly disapprove of any actions taken by individuals to vandalize locomotives.
New Web Cam - Avondale, LA by WebcamGreece
To all the railroad community, railfans, friends, and family, we send heartfelt wishes for a Happy Thanksgiving!
Recent security change was implemented on the server that was blocking the captcha (aka... not a robot prompt) to load on the website. This prevented folks from logging into the website and this has now been resolved. Note this issue did not affect the mobile app.
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com Found/Developer
We've changed all the BNSF train symbols within the system to now include the dash delimiter between the train type indicator and the org/dst train station codes.
This will make it easier to quickly recognize the train symbols.
Note that when submitting new reports
If you don't include the dash delimiter; the server will automatically format the symbol into the correct format (assuming the symbols is within the system).
Added - MNNR45 - B23-7 - This will be temporary addition to the site while the unit is on it's way back to Minnesota. Currently on CSX M367
Added - NS3989 - Patched - Former CEFX Gray/Blue/White (Reporting suspended)
Added - NS3990 - Patched - Former CEFX Gray/Blue/White
Added - NS3991 - Patched - Former CEFX Gray/Blue/White
Added - NS3992 - Patched - Former CEFX Gray/Blue/White
Added - NS3993 - Patched - Former CEFX Gray/Blue/White (Reporting suspended)
Removed - KCS 2900 - KCS Grey - Repainted
Added - CSXT6003 - Operation Lifesaver. This is a temporary addition while it's transported from NY to NC and will be removed afterwards.
Majority of the CN train symbols and routing matrixes are built and configured in the system. This means if you have the "inbound trains" feature you will start seeing them show up on your screens if the route of the train is inbound for your location. But please note we're still working on the ETA precision for CN.
Special Note with CN train symbols
CN shares train symbols with different regions of the railroad. An example would be "CN L501" which has 8 variations (please read the CN train symbol anatomy). I've coded the system that when submitting a new report and you enter in the correct sub division and "CN L501"; the server will automatically assign the correct variant.
Quick example...
Train "CN L501-61" - Origin (Flint, MI) to Dest (Battle Creek, MI)
When submitting a report if you enter "CN L501" and select "CN Flint Subdivision" then the server will automatically assign "CN L501-61".
Changed the locomotive codes for 2 CMQ units as they've been sold to NS.
CMQ1002 > NS3987
CMQ1006 > NS3988
Inbound Train Feature
Please note the new "Inbound Train" feature was released in version 3.26 which will attempt to provide a heads up on when a train is inbound to a configured radius around your device. This is still flagged with a experimental flag and please read our FAQ on the site for more details. Android 3.26 is already within the Google Play Store and Apple 3.26 version should be available next week.
Android Notifications (v3.26)
Google is requiring application permission be granted to display notifications within the app if you're phone is running Google OS 13 (Tiramisu) or higher. With the recent app release; the HU app wasn't requesting permission and thus notifications are not displaying.
A new version is queued up within the Google Play Store (3.27) which will resolve this issue and should be available shortly.
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
Added - CSXT1850 - L&N
Removed - KCS 2841 - KCS Grey - Repainted
Removed - CSXT940 - Crayola Unit - Repainted
Added - IC6252 - CN - Illinois Central Paint "OLS"
NS1069 - Virginian has been repainted and is now unlocked for reporting. Please check out AltoonaWorks FB page for pictures.
New Web Cam - Austell, GA by VirtualRailfan.com
Added - CSXT1976 - Conrail
Removed - BNSF 1466 - BN Paint - Repainted
Removed - BNSF 164 - ATSF Bluebonnet - Repainted
Added - CP9840 & CP9737 - BioFuel Units
Our servers needed some TLC this morning and this was executed today between 10-10:30AM EST. Thus the servers may have been unresponsive or sluggish during this window.
As a side now; with all the new functionality that we’re throwing into the system (milepost, routing, eta calculations, etc…). We’ll be looking to upgrade our servers within the next few months.
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
We've made a tweak to the system that when a web camera is submitted and there is multiple camera operators watching the same lines at the same location (Fostoria, OH); we will normalize the location name within the report.
Example... A report use to show as "Fostoria, OH (Railstream)" or "Fostoria, OH (VRF)" will now be recorded as "Fostoria, OH". This resolves an issue where with how reports displayed within the system.
This will take affect going forward and note this will only occur in special locations like Fostoria, OH and a couple others.
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
Hi everyone,
We've published our train symbol database online and it can be found at our web site on the top navigation "Train Symbols". This is a database that is community driven for the past couple years but was only viewable on the mobile app.
Couple quick notes...
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com - Founder/Developer
Starting today the server may require that you upgrade the Heritage Units app if the version you're running is severely out of date. Simply head to the App Store or Google Play store and find the Heritage Units app and click "Update" and you should be all set.
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
Hello Everyone,
I've released the web cam reporting back to the web browser. Note that you must have the Heritage Units application 3.22+ installed on a phone/tablet to pair your browser to your device (both Android and iOS versions released today).
I've tried to make it as easy as possible for folks to report in the new UI for webcams. I've also started to build in maps for each camera to assist with the orientation of the web cameras to actual railroad lines and will provide individualized instructions for certain web cams to help during the report.
As always... constructive and/or positive feedback is always welcomed as it keeps me motivated knowing that I'm helping railfans out. You can reach out to me at the contact links at the bottom of the web site or within the application (More > Profile). Any bugs or issues please let me know... I'm human and mistakes do happen but I'm quick to fix if confirmed to be an issue.
Happy railfanning!
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com - Founder/Developer
Removed - 4 BNSF Units (Executive/Grinstein Paint) > sold to BUGX (BNSF9832, BNSF9546, BNSF9760, BNSF9697)
I'm making a few changes to web cam reporting...
In mobile app version 3.22; you will no longer need to adjust for the timezone. We ask that you enter the exact time that matches the camera's timestamp (don't worry... we'll handle the timezone stuff). The 3.22 app version should be available within the Apple/Google Play stores within the next few days...
Coming very soon...
We're going to start allowing web cam reports to be submitted via web browser again. We know that most folks watching web cams are sitting near a computer and this will make it easier to report.
Note you'll still be required to register/install the mobile app for security reasons but I'll have more details on this very soon...
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
Following units have been out of service/scrapped for a long time.
Removed - AMTK 42 - Veterans
Removed - AMTK 90208 - Veterans
Removed - AMTK 822 - Phase III
Removed - AMTK 197 - Big Game Train
Removed - AMTK 162 - M. Kempf Memorial Unit
Removed - AMTK 156 - Phase I
Following units have been unwrapped
Removed - AMTK653 - Harry Potter - Unwrapped
Removed - AMTK634 - Harry Potter - Unwrapped
Removed - BNSF1772 - ATSF Bluebonnet - Repainted
Removed - AMTK641 - Harry Potter - Wrap Removed
Removed - AMTK638 - Harry Potter - Wrap Removed
Removed - BNSF 9657 - Executive/Grinstein Paint - Sold to BUGX
We've unlocked NW611 for reporting in preparation for it's return trip back to Virginia.
New Web Cam - Houston, TX (T&NO Junction) by https://livetrains.com
Removed - BNSF 1980 - BN Paint - Repainted
UP Steam Club just announced the UP4014 (Big Boy) will be running June 7th to July 3rd. We'll enable this unit for reporting the day before on June 6th. Below as the schedule shared within the email. For more details please visit the UP Steam Club web page.
Removed - IC 2466 - Blue Devil - Being scrapped
Removed - BNSF 642 - ATSF Warbonnet - Repainted
When reviewing another problem with notification rules; I discovered numerous notification rules where the location name was set correctly (example... "Columbus, OH") but didn't have any geo-coordinates on the rule. This resulted in the rule never correctly working.
I've fixed the root cause of the bug and updated a majority of the notification rules within the system. Thus if you're one of the persons within this group, you'll start receiving notifications again going forward.
Note that email notification rules can be setup at the following link @ https://www.heritageunits.com/user/settings/notify
Brian =)
HeritageUnits.com
NS8099 Southern unit is repainted and sitting outside the shops. Reporting on the unit has been unlocked.
Removed - BNSF 625 - ATSF Warbonnet - Repainted
0er AltoonaWorks, NS1071 has been released and thus we're unlocking reporting on the unit.
4/30/2023
CPKC sub divisions and routing are now 95% configured and operational within the HU system. Please note that I'll be providing more milepost detail to sub divisions as time permits. Any questions or if you see anything that needs tweaked please reach out to me via the contact page.
Brian :)
HeritageUnits.com
4/23/2023
With the CPKC merger I'm starting work on mapping out all the CPKC lines within Canada and building out the routing matrix. This will take a few weeks to complete but please note that routing between stations may be off as I configure things during this timeframe so, please be patient as I bring things online.
Brian :)
HeritageUnits.com
Added - SDNX2105 - Coaster F40PH-3C & unlocked ATSF5704 in preparation for their move from SCRM to Commerce, CA.